I was very impressed by AA when he was winning in the UFC, then it looked like he lost his confidence to the point where I heard he was a bodyguard taking off his shirt on the Jerry Springer show-- WTF?

Anyway, it sure looks like he is back. Who was that he was fighting there?

Story: Back when AA was on top of the UFC, he was my son's favorite (my son was about 7 at the time). As AA entered the octagon and began warming up my son warmed up with him, punching and kicking this way and that. Then he turned to me and said, "You know Dad, I think he could beat even you."

Bas Rutten on the Springer Show. Showing his skills on prime time. About 6 years ago I was reading a magazine, in it Bas Rutten was asked where he thinks he'll be in 6 years and he answered " IN THE MOVIES." Well...

IMHO AA almost lost last night. His BJJ is non-existant. Barnett and Fedor would run through AA. Also, how about freaking Nelson and Arlovski getting stood back up when Nelson was in side control with a submission! WTF!!!

On the topic of Kimbo, I'm pretty sure that fight was supposed to be fixed. A fairly important person for this event was trying to get the ref to jump in and call Seth for hitting Kimbo in the back of the head:

He says "he's hitting him in the back of the head" then points to the back of his head. . . . interesting?!

The clip I saw DID look like there was a hammer fist to the back of the head/neck. The first right hand had about as much on it as Ali's KO punch of Sonny Liston in their second fight Did any of the follow up punches land solidly?

As I recall the punch that sent kimbo to the mat was not very hard... but it hit solidly and square on the jaw. He did not actually go stiff until he took another solid shot while on the ground. If I saw (and remember) correctly the knockout happened after he went down.

Liddel went down from a little clip on the jaw from Rampage didn't he? As I recall it didn't look like that hit very hard either... Maybe accuracy is enough sometimes?

Logged

When life gives you lemons make lemonadeWhen life gives you hemlock, do NOT make hemlockade!

ryangruhn nice video, props to the Hulkster. Kimbo was out of his league, it just took a decent fighter to show it. He has Hugo Durate syndrom. They always dominate their opponents, but then the run into a buzz saw and they break, mentally. Watch the fight with Hugo Duarte and Tank Abbott. How far was Hugo going to crawl?

Here, to my eye, it didn't look like much AND should have been seen coming in

Kimbo is sort of just a brawler though. Run in swinging and overwhelm the opponent... and there is certainly something to be said for that. It is nothing to laugh about when you can pull it off. I didn't look like much... maybe he ran into it or something? Who knows. I have caught some shots that hobbled me through the mask which certainly surprised the hell out of me!

He is sort of just a thug and I am glad he lost. Maybe this will humble him and he will come back better for it?

« Last Edit: October 06, 2008, 04:47:08 PM by Jonobos »

Logged

When life gives you lemons make lemonadeWhen life gives you hemlock, do NOT make hemlockade!

i think Jonobos has it dead on. . . even though Kimbo has added a good MMA coach in Bas to his repetoire doesn't mean he can run through a cage with his chin exposed daring someone to hit it. cause in this case, someone did and now it's all history. MMA is what it is. we've all seen it a million times. the best train for years and they're on top for a long time. they beat the best and lose to unknowns with a good jab to the chin. Kimbo can't deny it, Liddell can't deny it, Tito . . . etc...

it can all be related to the Gatherings. it's humbling to know AND recognize that there is always someone better than you.

EliteXC imo is turning into a joke... kimbo was their main attraction to draw in the mainstream... ken shamrock vs kimbo was to be a big draw... for whatever reason ken was training hard prior to his match... got a cut above eye which reopened.... frank shamrock comments publically how ken is a disgrace to the shamrock legacy.... read today that they have been apparently planning on fighting each other for at least a year... they have agreed materially on a contract, some terms to be worked out

this is so WWF/WWE!!! elitexc should declare bankruptcy. only draw they have is Gina Carano imo. i like both shamrocks, but their glory may be behind them.

Logged

"A good stickgrappler has good stick skills, good grappling, and good stickgrappling and can keep track of all three simultaneously. This is a good trick and can be quite effective." - Marc "Crafty Dog" Denny

I'm wondering if Kimbo took a dive?Yes I believe he got hurt legitimately but not until he was pounced on. If the odds were 10-1 like I heard they were, that's a lot of money to be made by himself and others.

There were oddslike that on a last minute (literally!) fill in fight like that one was?

With regard to the Sharmrocks: I never thought that much of Ken-- I'm hard pressed to think of a single impressive fight. Frank OTOH has a number of really good fights to his credit. I thought he fought well in his recent loss to Cung Le. Given the size differential and converse fighting rep differential and the well known dislike between the adopted brthers, I suppose they could market an audience for a fight, , ,

Big weekend for UFC. I'll be excited to see Anderson put on another display. Sean Sherk is also fighting Tyson Griffin which I am looking forward to! We are having Sean in State College in December so we are all hyped about seeing him fight!

Griffin has a pretty impressive record with wins over Urijah Faber, Duane Ludwig, Clayton Guida and a number of others. His only loss is to Frank Edgar which went all three rounds and in my book, went down as one of the best and most technical fights at 155. He's no slouch but I'm fairly confident that Sherk is going to do very well against him.

This will be his second fight without the additional help. To change gears it was great to see Sled Dog in "Countdown to UFC" on Spike talking about Cote. I am always in BTT Canada's corner but I REALLY like Silva for this fight.

Yeah, he always seems to get his leg in the right place for the trip or sweep ..... Seems like taking out the legs is a great thing to be able to pull off, especially if you are smaller, against someone bigger and heavier.

Logged

It will seem difficult at first, but everything is difficult at first. Miyamoto Musashi.

Impressive fight from Sherk last night! It received fight of the night and rightly so. Bummer about Anderson & Cote. I hate seeing people get injured and unable to continue. On a more positive note I think I saw just about every variation in Silva's footwork last night, how cool! His footwork is so impressive and I'm glad that we are finally seeing fighters that can switch leads at will in a technical way. I also give props to Cote for being able to keep up with Anderson and have the eye to see what Silva was doing with his footwork. Mark D. had some great cornering advice as well. Amongst many other things he mentioned that when Anderson stops moving he is timing Cote and I believe this to be true.

"You see, it's not the blood you spill that gets you what you want, it's the blood you share. Your family, your friendships, your community, these are the most valuable things a man can have." Before Dishonor - Hatebreed

that . . . was . . . TOTALLY AWESOME!!! i've never seen a clothesline uppercut-hook. decleated Faber. but it's what has been mentioned before. there's always somebody better than you out there. not to take away from Faber but athleticism and tenacity will only get you so far. too much of that seems desperate.

"A good stickgrappler has good stick skills, good grappling, and good stickgrappling and can keep track of all three simultaneously. This is a good trick and can be quite effective." - Marc "Crafty Dog" Denny

With all this talk of AA working on his boxing with Freddie, I wonder how much he's been working his takedown defense which is what he should be the most worried about. I can Fedor taking him down and dominating on the ground. I can see AA right now on his back, Fedor in side control.

Very much looking forward to tonight's fights. A shout out for Vlady Matyushenko in particular-- Vlady was always very helpful to me when I was at RAW. I certainly presented zero questions for him, but he was always a complete gentleman when we rolled. Very, very, technical and frighteningly strong. I remember one time trying a two-handed wrist lock on him and he didn't even notice that I was trying Watching Vlady and Rico Chiaparelli roll was always quite special too. His decisive loss to Arlovski several years ago knocked him off stride for a while, but I hear he has been fighting very well recently. I wish him a great night.

A small Arlovski story: Several years ago when AA was first rampaging through the UFC he was my son's favorite fighter. I'm guessing Conrad was about 6 at the time. AA was in the cage warming up before a fight and Conrad was shadow boxing along with him. He turned to me and said "You know Dad, I think Arlovski could beat even you."

I am really disappointed in BJ Penns performance. He was totally outclassed tonight.In all seriousness I don't think Penn brought in enough world class resources to help him. While GSP had an entire country backing him and wanting to be on his team.Really disappointed. Especially after he was calling GSP a quitter along with all the other trash talk.

Lyoto Machida impressed me. Though I do not like his upright posture when standing. He made the shiver/elbow work really well He stayed in the ground situations long enough to take advantage of them and if they weren't going his way escaped. His coming from a traditional martial arts impresses me even more. The ability to integrate tma into the cage. I am looking forward to some young bull integrating filipino martial arts into the cage succesfully."Crafty Dog" or Lester "Surf Dog" Griffin may find some talent.

Jones looked very impressive with an unorthodox style that confused the seasoned UFC show star Bonnar. Then impressed me with the numerous takedowns at will...his hedging of the last round by running was a disappointment though. He seems to be a very promising new star especially if he has a solid chin. The single leg hold to spinning elbow was highly impressive and missed the back of Bonnars head by inches. Nice technique that should be considered.

Karo looked old and his skill set looked 2003-4 ish. Fighters are improving at more than their "A" game, so one should work there B and C games bringing them up to a higher level.

Honestly I think BJ took some good shots, maybe never been hit that hard before and was demoralized by the 3rd round.4th round started out a little better. GSP had the perfect plan to negate BJ strengths.

Love the Machida fight, lateral movement in and out with the knees.

The spinning elbow was cool, I was wondering if it could work if someone grabbed your weapon.

Sorry.. not as technical as others. Looking forward to hearing others as well.

Missed some of the earlier fights got to Mike's late.

Logged

"You see, it's not the blood you spill that gets you what you want, it's the blood you share. Your family, your friendships, your community, these are the most valuable things a man can have." Before Dishonor - Hatebreed

B.J. Penn's Camp Files Formal Complaint Over Vaseline on St. Pierre's Back Between Rounds | www.cagepotato.com

" "I saw the commission jump up there and flipping out," said Dana White. They said one of the guys was rubbing Vaseline on Georges' back in between rounds. It was one and two, I think."

"The guys from the athletic commission went up there and started screaming at them. Knocked the Vaseline and kicked the Vaseline out of the Octagon."

White added that "some Vaseline on a guy's back didn't change the outcome of that fight, but you don't do it," and said the blame should fall on the cornerman responsible and not GSP.

"If a guy was intentionally putting Vaseline on a guy's back, he should never corner a mixed martial arts fight again."

As for what becomes of the complaint now, White said it's out of his hands.

"Who knows. That's up to the commission." "

Intentional?

« Last Edit: February 01, 2009, 07:19:25 AM by Robertlk808 »

Logged

"You see, it's not the blood you spill that gets you what you want, it's the blood you share. Your family, your friendships, your community, these are the most valuable things a man can have." Before Dishonor - Hatebreed

B.J. Penn's Camp Files Formal Complaint Over Vaseline on St. Pierre's Back Between Rounds

That was actually my first thought when BJ couldn't pull off his high guard as it did appear he couldn't grip. I was like that guys got to have vaseline on his "lats".Kind of like guys putting a bit of lotion on the wrist before grappling. I can see a legitimate complaint there, but it will never change the fights outcome. It may evolve into stricter rules and contracts.

After a dominating victory over B.J. Penn at UFC 94, Georges St. Pierre is clearly the better fighter. GSP left no doubt. And yet now there is, thanks to one of his cornermen, Phil Nurse. It's pretty clear by watching the video that Nurse had some Vaseline on his hands when he rubbed St. Pierre's shoulders, back and chest between the first and second rounds.

Why is that a big deal in mixed martial arts? It's significant because of all the grappling and maneuvering that takes place on the ground. St. Pierre was on top of Penn in the second round and the Hawaiian tried several times to shift his legs up to work for a triangle choke or an armbar. Grip and some friction is huge in these cases and a slippery fighter would make it more difficult to lock on one of those holds. Above you can see, Nurse apply Vaseline to GSP's face, then get more Vaseline, then rub his shoulders, arms and back.

"To cheat to win is not honorable. Why need another edge? Our gameplan was on the ground, not striking because we knew Georges had good kicks. We planned to work off the back."

Valentino says they warned the Nevada State Athletic Commission before the fight alleging that St. Pierre did it before their meeting in 2006 and that Matt Serra's camp claimed the same thing happened in Serra's second fight against GSP.

Greg Jackson, GSP's trainer hurt his reputation according to Valentino:

"I respect Greg Jackson but to do something like that, his integrity has been compromised."

Jackson told his side of the story to MMAWeekly:

"In between rounds, you always want to put on vaseline on (a fighter’s face). So Phil Nurse put all the Vaseline on his face, so his hands might have had a miniscule amount left over from that, when he went around the side and rubbed a little point on his back, and tapped on his chest."

Watching the scenarios (1, 2, 3), show Nurse did more than tap the chest and rub a little point on GSP's back.

Jackson chalked all of this up to an overreaction by the NSAC:

"At that point, somebody in the audience thought we were greasing George down, and ran over and told the commission that we were greasing his body down. The commission came in and said ‘you can’t grease him down,’ which didn’t work. They said ‘you’re putting Vaseline on his back,’ and Phil’s like, ‘oh, there might be a little on my fingers, but it wasn’t intentional at all, and of course they wiped it right off and it was gone, so it wasn’t a factor in the fight at all."

"The Commission" was actually NSAC executive director Keith Kizer. He bolted into the cage when he saw Nurse doing the same thing between the second and third rounds. Cage Writer spoke with Kizer after the fight and he was still steaming, saying that the rubbing of the back with Vaseline was completely inappropriate. But he was unsure if it had been done between the first and second.

UFC president Dana White also thought it was a serious violation:

"I saw the commission jump up there and flip out," said White. "They said one of the guys was rubbing Vaseline on Georges' back in between rounds. It was one and two, I think. I personally didn't see it, the commission did. And that's about as illegal as you can get... I'm sure the commission is going to deal (with it)."

White didn't believe that it affected the outcome of the fight but he re-stated that illegal is illegal:

"You could have put Vaseline on from head to toe, that wasn't the point, the point was you don't do it. It's illegal. The guy who did it needs to be punished, it's not (St. Pierre's) fault. The question is what happens to a guy that does that. You've got to put the smack down on him. He should lose his license."

Ultimately, did the use of the Vaseline win the fight for St. Pierre? No. But Penn's camp does have a right to complain.

St. Pierre should be getting props for being the better conditioned fighter, designing and executing the perfect gameplan. The way he wore down Penn in the first round by holding his left leg up on three occasions with the threat of a single-leg takedown, was brilliant. It allowed him takedown a tired Penn with ease in each of the next three rounds. More importantly, GSP was able to pass guard and shift between full guard and side control as if he were fighting a first-year jiu-jitsu student. Now Penn, other fighters who dislike St. Pierre and fans may call for an asterisk on his dominant victory.